Page 55 of Holding You
“I’ll manage.”
“Well, thank you.”
She nods.
I rinse my bowl out and place it in the dishwasher, glancing over my schedule. She’s watching me.
I don’t comment on it though. She’s doing me a favor, and I’m not about to rock that boat, but a part of me is going to wonder all day long what’s going through her mind.
And as much as I want to know, I do know how lucky I am right now.
The sooner I prepare for this meeting, the sooner it will go and if I’m lucky, the closer I’ll be to owning Collins Corp.
My meeting lasts three hours.
Three.
Hours.
I come upstairs to see what Susie is doing, but the house is empty. Only a note from Ruby that says they left, about an hour before my meeting was over, and that they will be gone for a few hours. Leave it to Ruby to leave a note instead of texting me.
She despises texting me.
That gives me two full hours with nothing on my plate.
I start by cleaning the dishes in the sink and placing them in the dishwasher. Then I wipe the counters down. Then I vacuum.
That takes up a whole hour of my time, so I make a sandwich for lunch and head back to the basement to see what I can clean there.
It isn’t much. Ruby keeps things clean.
So I settle for more work until I hear the patter of feet upstairs a couple of hours later.
I race up the steps to find my daughter.
I crave time for myself, but the moment I get it, I wish she were here with me.
“Dad!” Susie calls out and runs to hug me.
I beam, hugging her back.
“Wow,” I say. “Look at your hair.”
“Isn’t it the best? I think Ruby just replaced you as the one who does my hair.”
“Well,” I say, “we can take turns. I mean, if she’s up for it.”
Ruby is smiling, so that’s a good sign.
“It was just two French braids down the sides, nothing fancy.”
“Nothing fancy,” I repeat. “There are hardly any stray pieces falling around her face, giving her that wild child look.”
Ruby laughs.
“I had a paste, and it seemed to work.”
“I need to know what it is so we can buy some.”
